Food Smokers and Smoking Tips/Tricks/Techniques

Well, shit. I removed the wood chunks but neglected to replace them with coals. Guess what happened... The temp dropped to 160* very fast. I went back out and added more coals to the hot end (the grate has flaps on the side so I rotate the grate around until the flap opening is where I need to access the snake), closed the lid and watched for 25-30 min . It only made it up to 165* (I.T. Was still at 171*) so I pulled it, wrapped it and it's now in the oven at 300*, I.T. of 178*. I'll finish it there then put in a cooler for a few hours.

I think because the Weber is so big it was struggling to get back up to temp on the small snake. Next time I'll try 2/2 or 2/2/1 and use the vents to manage the temp.

 

Wouldn't happen with a pellet pooper!!

 

Yeah but once he figures this out he'll wonder why he didnt try it sooner

 

It's only my first try at it but I can definitely see doing this method more often. Although I haven't tasted it yet, so hold off on that for a bit! The snake method really did hold the temps pretty damned consistent; I just need to experiment with it. I think with 2/2 or 2/2/1 and a (nearly) full ring I could get a stable temp for +/-12 hours. The amount of smoke generated vs my pooper is night and day. This is the advantage I see with the weber...

Anywho, it went very quick once in the oven. About 60 minutes in it hit 200* and it was done, probe went in like buttah! It's in the cooler now, currently at 196* I.T. Smells good, fingers crossed!

My GF likes vinegar based sauces, I do not. I'm having my car club board meeting tonight and will serve it without sauce, but offer regular BBQ sauce and a vinegar based finishing sauce (from BBQ Brethren) on the side.

Thanks for all the advice! Things will start happening fast as I get closer to the meeting but I'll try and get a few pics after pulling.

 

My wife’s first Traegar test on her new birthday present.

 

The butt is in the cooler at 172* I.T. and it's 4:40pm. We won't eat until 7:30ish. By then I think the temp will be very low (it dropped 26* in an hour) - maybe 139*-140*. What would you do?

@horstuff @Lurkin

 

Have you tried to pull the bone out yet? If it's hard to pull out or doesn't come out cleanly it might be undercooked which may be why your temp is dropping so fast.

 

You’ll be fine, stop fanning the cooler door.

 

Did you wrap it heavy in towels? Should have. If it get's down to 160 or so, get it back up to 170 by putting it in a very low oven (170 is usually as low as a home oven goes), wrapped tightly in two layers of foil with the temp probe in it away from bone. As far as safety, just keep it above 140 (I would go 145) and you'll be fine as long as it hit 200 in the middle before.

 

When in doubt just throw it in the oven at 275 and finish it.

 

My wife just sent me more pics from tonight’s dinner. Pellet smokers are the bomb. Takes the voodoo out of the whole thing.

 

Could I borrow your wife next week? It's my birthday and I'm off. A meal like that each night would make me

 

Looks like a just converted my gas grill friend to weber

 

I don’t lend her out. But I do short term rentals.

 

I haven't touched my gas grill but once in quite a while...

Next smoke is gonna be on my kettle. Or pooper & kettle . Dual brisket comparison will have to happen at some point I think

 

I like the voodoo. But that’s just me.

 

For years we did the turkey dinner on a Weber kettle. 50 briquettes to start, divide 25 a side when red and 8 a side every 40 (or was it 45) minutes. You could set your clock to it and it was always perfect.

My wife’s offset charcoal smoker was a lot more involved and a lot more upkeep to keep the temp stable and in the zone. You couldn’t really go too far or risk your heat getting away from you. Same with the smoke. It was really hard to duplicate results either too little or too overpowering smoke flavour.

Now the Traegar pellet smoker. First test and it was easily the best, most balanced taste yet. I would easily say it was better than the winner of the local rib fest. Perfect smoke flavour neither too little or overpowering. Literally hit the sweet spot. Temps were bang on the whole time. Cooked to perfection. Now we can focus on the rubs, sauces, marinades and flavours.

 

Understood, but I seem to have nailed it using charcoal, no effort involved. To each his own. Caveat and disclaimer: offsets are historically a bitch compared to what I have, a WSM. If I was a little less bored, I may want the no fuss no muss, but I’m not. Plus I think the flavor kicks ass.

 

It moved freely when I tugged on it. My bone that is. Wait. What? Lol.

But it was a very hot day out...

Yeah, I grabbed what was close; couple patio chair cushions and an old pair of jeans.

I do know better and use towels when I do brisket, just didn't have any around at the time.

Yep. Wrapped in foil and in the oven at 280. Done in an hour.


So here it is, in all its pulled glory. Came out pretty darn good. I think it could have used a bit more smoke (but it still had more than my pellet pooper does) and bark. Next time; bit more rub, bigger snake, maybe hickory chunks, let it ride out the stall on the kettle.

 

I had to google WSM. The one thing I always loved about Weber is they equip you with recipes and make things idiot proof to get you started. You can then tailor you process from there.